NASCAR's Tony Stewart will still draw spotlight

Kevin Liles, USA Today Sports

Despite an upstate New York grand jury not charging NASCAR star Tony Stewart in the death of sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr., he will still find himself in the spotlight whenever there is an on-track incident.

Despite an upstate New York grand jury not charging NASCAR star Tony Stewart in the death of sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr., he will still find himself in the spotlight whenever there is an on-track incident. (Kevin Liles, USA Today Sports)

Jim UtterOf The Charlotte Observer (MCT)

Tony Stewart will still draw the spotlight in NASCAR

Anyone who thought a decision last month by an upstate New York grand jury not to charge NASCAR star Tony Stewart in the death of sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr. would be the end of the issue was sadly mistaken.

First, there has always been the possibility of a civil lawsuit by Ward's family.

This week illustrated the far more likely and long-lasting effects of Stewart's involvement in that incident.

Stewart backing down pit road and into Brad Keselowski's car Saturday night went largely unnoticed and was relatively minor considering other events that transpired, but some news media were quick to jump on Stewart's actions and portrayed him as the focus of the wild aftermath of the race.

Was it fair? No. Was it ethical? That depends on your standards for today's journalism.

Regardless, however, it is the reality of the world in which we live and what Stewart will likely face for the remainder of his career.

Stewart is just as likely to face the scrutiny and criticism whether he backed into someone on the track or in a local grocery store parking lot.

There are a great number of people for whom the grand jury's decision reinforced their belief in Stewart and what transpired that August night. There is also a group who will continue to blame Stewart and believe he got away with something.

It is unlikely those in either camp will ever change their mind and they are not required to do so.

Anything Stewart does that can be considered the least bit "controversial" will automatically become ammunition for those with a differing view.

The only way Stewart comes close to escaping it is to leave racing and he already said he wasn't going to do that.